{"id":849576,"date":"2025-05-19T22:13:59","date_gmt":"2025-05-20T03:13:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/19\/weapons-war-and-wealth-the-business-of-arms-in-the-middle-east\/"},"modified":"2025-05-19T22:13:59","modified_gmt":"2025-05-20T03:13:59","slug":"weapons-war-and-wealth-the-business-of-arms-in-the-middle-east","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/19\/weapons-war-and-wealth-the-business-of-arms-in-the-middle-east\/","title":{"rendered":"Weapons, war and wealth: The business of arms in the Middle East"},"content":{"rendered":"
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ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates \u00a0\u2014\u00a0<\/span>Arms are a global business, so it\u2019s little surprise that at the International Defense Exhibition and Conference, discerning quartermasters had a world buffet of weaponry before them, be it Brazilian ballistic munitions, Indian patrol boats or the latest in AI-enabled drones from the U.S.<\/p>\n

Also present was Israel, which brought 34 companies to the arms bazaar last month \u2014 a measure of the surprising resilience of Israel\u2019s trade with Arab nations amid the continuing regional turmoil triggered by Hamas\u2019 Oct. 7, 2023, attacks.<\/p>\n

Israel has pummeled Gaza, leaving tens of thousands of people dead and destroying much of the enclave; it has also invaded Lebanon and attacked Yemen. All that has kicked up global condemnation, with regional governments \u2014 including the United Arab Emirates \u2014 repeatedly denouncing Israel\u2019s actions.<\/p>\n

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\"Women <\/picture>\n
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Attendees at the biennial arms fair in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, check out a display.<\/p>\n

(Nabih Bulos \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n

But little of that opprobrium seemed evident at IDEX, as the biennial arms fair in the UAE is known. The mood at the Israeli pavilion seemed relaxed, with snatches of Hebrew heard amid the raft of languages in conversation. <\/p>\n

Stands for companies selling drones, smart surveillance devices and communication equipment all saw heavy traffic. A big success with attendees was a virtual-reality demo from the state-owned aerospace and aviation manufacturer Israel Aerospace Industries, or IAI. As the demo played, spokespeople and Israeli officials nearby spoke glowingly of the \u201ccombat-proven\u201d systems \u2014 read: used in Gaza and Lebanon \u2014 on display. <\/p>\n

Though company representatives demurred when asked about current conflicts, many said business was very much as usual.<\/p>\n

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\"Two <\/picture>\n
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Israel Aerospace Industries was one of 34 companies from Israel participating in the February 2025 weapons bazaar, known as IDEX. <\/p>\n

(Nabih Bulos \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t see any difference at all,\u201d said Ron Pollak, vice president of sales and marketing at Israeli arms manufacturer Emtan. This was the third time Emtan had participated in IDEX, he added, and the reception was as good as ever.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe evaluate market potential \u2026 and then we go. As long as it\u2019s a safe environment \u2014 and the UAE is very, very safe \u2014 there\u2019s no reason not to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Such a presence would have been unthinkable almost five years ago, when Israel and the UAE signed the U.S.-brokered the Abraham Accords, <\/a>in which the Emirates recognized Israeli sovereignty. Since then, Israeli firms in defense, agriculture and energy have all made inroads into what one Israeli entrepreneur recently described as the \u201cSand Curtain,\u201d with companies such as IAI and Elbit Systems, another arms manufacturer, creating Emirati subsidiaries.<\/p>\n

Other signatories to the accords include Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan, but ties with the Emirates have proved to be the most enduring during the war with Hamas, which saw Israel accused <\/a>of committing genocide and ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s campaign in Gaza began after Hamas assaulted southern Israel, killing roughly 1,200 people \u2014 most of them civilians \u2014 and kidnapping about 250 others. Palestinian health authorities in Gaza say Israeli attacks have killed more than 48,500 people, a tally that does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.<\/p>\n

A January ceasefire between Hamas and Israel has since broken down, with Israel restarting intense bombardment <\/a>of the enclave \u2014 the latest attacks have already killed more than 400 people, Palestinian authorities say. Israel cut off aid to Gaza during the cease-fire and has vociferously pushed for a plan backed by President Trump to forcibly relocate Gaza residents to other countries, including Egypt, Jordan, Sudan and Somalia. <\/p>\n

The UAE never stopped flights to Israel during the war and became its top Arab business partner last year. Trade between the two countries totaled $3.2 billion in 2024, according to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, an 11% increase from 2023.<\/p>\n

Other Arab nations, including those with populations holding strong pro-Palestinian sentiment, also saw a strengthening of business ties.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure said the country\u2019s natural gas exports to Egypt and Jordan increased by 13.4% in 2024, reaching 17.15 billion cubic yards \u2014 despite widespread calls for boycotts from citizens in both countries. <\/p>\n

Some of that commerce is a matter of economically minded realpolitik. Jordan, a major recipient of U.S. aid, has a restive population with millions of Palestinian refugees, but it needs to maintain good ties with Israel for security coordination \u2014 and to stay in Washington\u2019s good books.<\/p>\n

Similar pressures apply to Egypt, said Timothy Kaldas, an Egyptian analyst at the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy think tank: Egypt suffers from power outages and needs energy supplies \u2014 especially when they\u2019re conveniently located next door in Israel. At the same time, its moribund economic prospects mean that it can\u2019t ignore any opportunity to earn hard currency. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis trade relationship is strategic for both parties,\u201d Kaldas said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe rhetoric and the practice of the Egyptian government when it comes to the war \u2014 the ethnic cleansing, the genocide \u2014 are of course very distant from their practices.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Men <\/picture>\n
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Attendees at IDEX check out SMASH, a product created by Smartshooter, an international company headquartered in Israel. <\/p>\n

(Nabih Bulos \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n

For Israel, the most tantalizing diplomatic prize remains normalization with Saudi Arabia. An agreement with the kingdom, home to some of Islam\u2019s holiest sites, would grant religious legitimacy absent from other normalization deals.<\/p>\n

Saudi leaders insist they won\u2019t normalize ties without the creation of a Palestinian state \u2014 a nonstarter for the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a> and much of the Israeli public. But the two countries share enmity toward Iran and have indirectly cooperated to stop its attacks in the region.<\/p>\n

As for the merchants at IDEX, there is no reluctance to working with like-minded nations, said Abraham Mazor, vice president of business development and marketing at Smartshooter, an international company headquartered in Israel. The company says it uses artificial intelligence and other tech to \u201csignificantly increase\u201d the accuracy and lethality of small arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe go wherever we feel the customer is looking for innovation and new technologies. And I believe the countries in this area are looking to us,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

At Smartshooter\u2019s stand, an affable representative showed off wares to a rotating crowd, holding up a mock rifle for customers to try. Among the eager takers were Emirati students and engineers \u2014 the men in the long white robe known as a thobe, the women in abayas.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are more than happy to share with the Emirates because we have the same intentions for this technology \u2014 to save lives by protecting your people,\u201d Mazor said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s more than just selling. It\u2019s a partnership.\u201d<\/p>\n

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More to Read <\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Nabih Bulos
Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates \u00a0\u2014\u00a0Arms are a global business, so it\u2019s little surprise that at the International Defense Exhibition and Conference, discerning quartermasters had a world buffet of weaponry before them, be it Brazilian ballistic munitions, Indian patrol boats or the latest in AI-enabled drones from the U.S. Also present was Israel, which brought<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":849577,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[208,4364],"tags":[6841,8256],"class_list":{"0":"post-849576","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wealth","8":"category-weapons","9":"tag-wealth","10":"tag-weapons"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/849576","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=849576"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/849576\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/849577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=849576"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=849576"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=849576"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}